By Henry Rawn

2 19 2025

GAME NOTES

https://gobearcats.com/documents/2025/2/18/2024-25_Game_Notes_at_WVU.pdf

CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati men’s basketball team is making its shortest trip of Big 12 play this year when it heads to Morgantown to take on West Virginia at 7 p.m. Wednesday night, the 25th meeting between the two schools.

THE RUNDOWN

• Cincinnati took a 3-point lead on Dillon Mitchell’s steal and breakaway windmill dunk with 15 minutes left, but No. 10 Iowa State answered with a 10-0 run and never looked back in a tough road loss Saturday afternoon.
• UC, which entered the day No. 10 nationally with only 13.4 fouls per game, saw Mitchell and Jizzle James foul out for each of their first times this season by 2:56. The Cyclones went 26-of-30 at the foul line compared to Cincinnati’s 9-of-11. UC did force 18 turnovers, matching Iowa State’s season-high.
• James is averaging 22.3 ppg over his last four contests on 63.4 percent shooting, all following an 0-for-8 performance against West Virginia on Feb. 2 that concluded the first half of Big 12 play, where he was 8.4 ppg and 34.0 FG%. He is the first Bearcat with 3-straight 24-point games since Deonta Vaughn in January 2008.
• Mitchell is fifth nationally with 53 dunks and leads UC in steals (38) and rebounding (6.4 per game).
• Aziz Bandaogo scored 10 points, with UC falling to 14-3 and 8-2 this year when he scores in double-figures, and it came on the heels of his 10-rebound double-double versus Utah. Over his last four games, he is 19-for-26 (73.1 percent) with 11.3 ppg. His two steals and two blocks on Saturday also marked his highest combined total in a Big 12 game this year, and he is fourth nationally with 54 dunks.
• Josh Reed is 5-for-8 from deep the last two games, playing 23.5 minutes each for his Big 12 career-highs. He also garnered “MVP” chants late at the foul line against Utah amidst his career-high 13-point showing and stellar defense. Freshman Tyler Betsey also saw 19 minutes against ISU, his most in a league game. Sixty-five of his 90 shot attempts this year have been from deep, though Saturday was his first game not trying one.
• The Bearcats are 32-of-69 (46.4 percent) from deep the last three games. UC was averaging 5.7 makes per game at 26.6 percent over the first 10 Big 12 games. Cincinnati is 7-3 when Simas Lukosius makes three or more triples.
• These last four games have witnessed heavy rebounding swings. The Bearcats were minus-12 against UCF, though they shot a blistering 58.5 percent to make up for it. They dominated BYU (+15), including a 16-0 difference in second-chance points, before going +12 against Utah and -18 at Iowa State.
• The Bearcats are 2-0 this year when playing a team for the second time, up from 2-3 last year.
• Cincinnati is 13-1 when leading at the half and 2-9 when trailing or tied. Iowa State and now-No. 9 Texas Tech are the only teams UC has fallen to when scoring 70-plus (11-2 overall).

SERIES HISTORY

• The series is tied at 12 after West Virginia raced out to a 40-25 halftime lead and 63-50 win over Cincinnati in Fifth Third Arena on Feb. 2.
• Javon Small hit a trio of 3-pointers in the first 10 minutes, eventually scoring 14 at the break, to lead the Mountaineers. It was Day Day Thomas’ first of five-straight starts, and his 10 points led Cincinnati.
• WVU has a new staff and only one returner (who is redshirting this year), so last year’s meeting in Morgantown is only symbolic because UC boasts largely the same team as last year. The Bearcats’ 11-0 run gave it a 10-point lead with 6:29 left, but WVU countered with eight-straight points and eventually prevailed, 69-65.
• The schools are most known in the hoops circles as the shared home of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Bob Huggins, who coached the Bearcats during a memorable 1989-2005 run and leading his alma mater Mountaineers from 2007-23.
• The Bearcats went to 14 NCAA Tournaments during his 16 years, reaching the 1992 Final Four and No. 1 in the country during both the 1996-97 and 1999-00 seasons.
• These two teams were Big East rivals from 2005-12 as well before the Mountaineers joined the Big 12.
• This is the third school in which Wes Miller has coached against Small, as he began his career at East Carolina and Oklahoma State.

COURTESY UC SPORTS COMMUNICATIONS